A&M's Epperson is top punter in SEC

Updated 11:42 pm, Thursday, September 20, 2012

John Benson, of Austin the Fighting Texas Aggie Band waves his towel as ESPN's College Gameday airs their show, Saturday, Sept. 8, 2012, in College Station.

John Benson, of Austin the Fighting Texas Aggie Band waves his towel as ESPN's College Gameday airs their show, Saturday, Sept. 8, 2012, in College Station.

Photo: Nick De La Torre, Houston Chronicle

A&M's Epperson is top punter in SEC

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COLLEGE STATION – Texas A&M's Ryan Epperson, owner of the best start of any punter in the Southeastern Conference this season, became a big Baylor fan while attending Keller High five years ago. Aggies can blame it on his family.

"My junior year of high school I really wanted to go to Baylor because of watching Derek," Ryan said.

Derek Epperson was among the top punters in Baylor history from 2007-10, and so the younger Epperson, faced with two years of competing with his brother, chose to cut his own path to college football three years ago. A path leading him to College Station.

"I loved the hometown feeling here," Epperson said this week, as the Aggies prepared for their 6 p.m. Saturday nonconference game against South Carolina State. "College Station reminds me of Keller, and honestly I never really liked Waco much."

Now, Derek, who's working on his masters' degree at Baylor, sits in the stands at Kyle Field and yells for his sibling - and it's shaping up as quite a memorable senior season for the maroon-blooded of the brothers.

"Everything is finally coming together," Ryan said.

Out kicks opponents

Epperson, who's 6-2 and 195 pounds, ranks third nationally and first in the SEC through two games by averaging 47.5 yards on 11 punts. Every year since he was a freshman, he's fended off competition to win the punting gig at A&M.

In 2009, he edged out Ken Wood for the starting nod midway through the season, and kept a foothold on the job in 2010 over Wood and Jared Jaroszewski. For the past two years, he's beaten out touted Drew Kaser - last season under then-coach Mike Sherman and this season under new coach Kevin Sumlin.

"He was better," Sumlin simply said when asked what had been the difference between Epperson and Kaser in camp. "Coming into the first ball game the things that concerned me were our defensive line and our specialists. They've performed well."

Epperson's strong performances at A&M aren't limited to the football field. Like former teammate Randy Bullock, last year's Lou Groza Award winner as the nation's top kicker, Epperson is a petroleum engineering major.

A problem solver

"In high school my favorite subjects were math, chemistry, physics - anything involving problem solving," said Epperson, an Academic All-Big 12 selection the past two years.

Over the last two semesters Epperson and Bullock, now with the Texans, took most of their petroleum engineering courses together.

"That really helped with school and football, just getting to spend that much time with Randy," Epperson said of learning from Bullock.

Unlike Bullock and Derek at Baylor, who both competed in the Big 12, Epperson has a chance to help cut another unchartered path for Texas A&M - in the university's first year in the SEC.

"To visit and play all of these new schools is just a great experience," Epperson said. "There are not a whole lot of people who will be able to say they did that."

Even fewer will be able to say they were four-year starters at punter for the Aggies.